Walter Johnson: Baseball's Big Train

by Henry W. Thomas

Book Overview

Henry W. Thomas, the grandson of Walter Johnson, lives in Arlington, Virginia. He is currently editing, for audio release, the interviews taped by Lawrence Ritter for his classic The Glory of Their... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0803294336
• ISBN13: 9780803294332
• Release Date: April 1998
• Publisher: Bison Books
• Length: 516 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.0" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

What a pitcher! What a book!

One of the best baseball books I have ever read- easily on my top ten list and maybe even in my top five. I was not aware that the book was written by Johnson's great grandson until I began reading; this certainly gave the material a lot of credibility. Walter Johnson was, without question, the greatest pitcher in baseball history. Along with Al Stump's work on Ty Cobb, Robert Creamer's work on Casey Stengel, and the recently published Cy Young biography (author's name escapes me), this book establishes a lasting legacy of Johnson on and off the field.

Who's the best? Walter

Simply stated, this is the most detailed as well as accurate baseball bio, at least of a player from pre-WWII years, we have. Yet Thomas keeps the story moving, and we get the full picture of the man and his family life as well. Jack Kavanaugh's "Ol' Pete" (Grover Alexander), and Reed Browning's "Cy Young" make excellent relievers, but here's your starting pitcher, and Big Train didn't need bailing out very often.

The Big Book on The Big Train

Written from the heart, and it shows. Truly a magnificent piece of work from Henry Thomas. I loved this book from beginning to end. Follow Walter Johnson from beginning to end through the eyes of someone that actually cares about Walter Johnson, his grandson. I cannot say enough great things about this book. Such a teriffic treat about a wonderful character in the history of baseball.

If you enjoy baseball you'll LOVE this book!!!!

Henry W. Thomas helps tell his grandfathers life story. It is a well reasearched book with a lot of interesting facts about the greatest pitcher of all time. I highly recommend this book to any one who enjoys the golden-age of baseball.

You can't help not liking the Big Train

Henry Thomas seems to have inherited the Big Train's genes. One gentleman does a big service to another (his grandfather)as Walter johnson is depicted in this well researched and written biography. If you are an avid fan of great pitchers, dead-ball era ballplayers, or just enjoy a heartwarming story of a well respected gentleman baseball player, this book will not disappoint. Walter "Barney" Johnson was more than just the second winningest major league pitcher of all time with a blazing fastball. First and foremost he was the sports main ambassador of goodwill as well as the idol of Washington Senator fans and the entire baseball community. The only matter that the book did not clear up with me was how he derived the nickname "Big Train." In other aspects, the book was extremely well done.